


Bay Laurel is Poisonous

by CeNedraRiva



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Angry Castiel, Gaslighting, Manipulative Relationship, Naive Castiel, Past Relationship(s), Plothole Fill, References to Gaslighting, Temporary Amnesia
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-02
Updated: 2016-09-02
Packaged: 2018-08-12 15:42:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,333
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7940074
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CeNedraRiva/pseuds/CeNedraRiva
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Daphne knew that it was risky, taking in an unknown man into her home. But Emmanuel, blessed with amnesia, had proven to be a kind and trustworthy person. He was a good husband, and his God-given gifts of healing had brought her much respect and admiration. <br/>Perhaps she had become a trifle too proud, or maybe it was greed, but the first time Emmanuel paused, eyes wide with the ghosts of lost memories, Daphne lied. She convinced him it was nothing, that he must be mistaken. Of course, she knew it was wrong, and of course she regretted it. She was a good person, and good people didn't mislead others. That didn't prevent her from lying the next time he asked. Or the time after that.<br/>Somehow, she had never expected him to realise her duplicity.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bay Laurel is Poisonous

**Author's Note:**

> I always thought it was weird, that Castiel never mentioned or visited Daphne Allen again. She resued him, was his wife for months. Cas isn't the sort of angel to abandon friends. Demons had already attacked her while searching for him, he would not leave her undefended. I understand him deciding to leave. Daphne knew nothing of the supernatural, and Cas was at a very low point with the newly-remembered guilt of his time as Godstiel. But it has been four years since, and Cas never brings her up, and he never visits her, and he has never flown to save her from attack.  
> It's suspicious. The only reason I can think of for Cas not mentioning her would be if they didn't part as friends, but when they last saw each other in the show, Cas still had amnesia. Which led me to think, perhaps that wasn't the last time they saw each other.

Daphne’s fingers fumbled over the latch, quietly frantic to get the door open. Thankfully it was only seconds later that the lock gave way and she pushed inside, finally relaxing as the door closed. It was only that morning that she had been caught, manhandled and threatened with torture while her husband was out. Luckily, the threats had not progressed to actions before the other man had arrived, the one seeking her husband’s assistance. He’d saved her from what he claimed was a demon. Emmanuel confirmed that the man had not been human, his face veiled in a darkness only her husband could see.

Breathing calm once more, Daphne moved deeper within the house, heading to drop off the groceries in the kitchen. She wondered when her husband would return from his errand to work one of God’s miracles. Usually, her Emmanuel would be back after only hours, but once he had been gone for several days. He’d called every evening to update her, to explain how one miracle had become dozens, but she hadn’t minded. Daphne was a devout woman. She would not prevent her husband from working miracles, even if it meant he wasn’t always home.

What had that man sought her husband’s skills for? Once the demon had been put down, the man had seemed to lose all his surety, staring wistful and lost at Emmanuel. Almost as if he recognised him.

She blinked.

No. It wasn’t possible. There was no way anyone from Emmanuel’s past had tracked him down, she had made sure of that. The chances that an old friend of Emmanuel’s came to seek his healing powers was even lower. No, her rescuer had simply been overwhelmed by the idea of healing his brother. She had nothing to worry about.

Moving into the living room, Daphne froze. The silhouette of a man draped in a pale trench coat held her captive, his figure imposing in the dark. Was this another demon, hidden in human skin? She swallowed, shifting to back out of the room.

The man turned, lights flickering on.

“Emmanuel! You scared me.” Giving a nervous laugh, Daphne moved further into the room, opening her arms to greet her husband with an embrace. He didn’t move any closer. Didn’t smile. His body was held rigid and still.

Daphne faltered, letting her arms fall to her sides. Emmanuel’s eyes had always been an almost glacial blue, but she had never seen them this _cold_ before.

“Emmanuel?”

His gaze grew colder.

“My name is Castiel. I am an Angel of the Lord.”

Daphne felt something twist inside her.

“You betrayed my trust, girl.”

She swallowed, taking a step backwards.

“No. No, you’re wrong. Your name is Emmanuel, I rescued you from a lake in the wilderness. God brought us together!”

The man shook his head, stepping forwards to follow her retreat.

“My Father had no hand in our meeting, I assure you.”

“Please, Emmanuel! You’re confused. You may be blessed by His grace, but do not be so arrogant as to call yourself an angel. You’re a man! You’re my husband!”

“I would advise you to stop talking.”

“Emmanuel-“

“Be silent!” He didn’t raise his voice, but Daphne could feel the power behind the command. Eyes wide, she twisted to run back through the house, only to freeze. Emmanuel was standing before her. He’d been halfway across the living room. Behind her.

Daphne panicked, running for the front door. Again, the man was suddenly before her. Without moving. Without running. Daphne pressed her back against the wall, heart in her throat.

The man – not Emmanuel, but Castiel – stepped closer, stopping one pace away. His eyes were burning with some sort of fury, almost seeming to glow from within. Unnatural.

“Daphne Allen. Let me start by thanking you for allowing me refuge in your house during my time of need. Know that this is the only thanks you will receive.”

Daphne swallowed, feeling the eyes tracing across her with contempt.

“Please, I can explain-“

“Do not attempt to lie once more.”

Daphne was silent.

“Daphne Allen. When we met, I had no memory of my past. No memory to compare your behaviour to. That is no longer the case.”

His eyes really were glowing now, blue light gathering behind his pupils. Daphne could feel static in the air, pressing against her skin.

“I remember everything, now. I remember healing your ankle, and the greed in your eyes as you guided me to your home. I remember you using my abilities as social leverage, to extract petty revenge on your neighbours. I remember how completely you exploited my vulnerability for your own gain.”

Castiel took a breath, stepping forwards and into her space. Daphne’s breath hitched, fear closing her throat.

“You never brought me to a hospital, when for all you knew I could be internally injured. You never reported me found to the police, despite the likelihood of there being people searching for me. You told everyone that I was simply the friend of a distant half-cousin. You told me that we were now married, without even a pretence at a ceremony.”

He was looming over her now.

“That isn’t even the worst part, is it? Daphne?”

“Please-“

“This is your last warning to remain silent, girl, or I will remove your tongue. Are we clear?”

Daphne gave out a strangled whine, nodding shakily.

“The worst part. The worst part is that you actively tried to keep me ignorant, and reliant on you. You removed anything that you deemed threatened my amnesia, removing any stimulus that had led to a recovered memory from my vicinity. You isolated me from the people around us, so that I would not notice how unusual your actions are. You cast doubt on my thoughts and recollections, leading me to believe they were nothing but fevered hopes and dreams. I trusted you, and you betrayed me.”

Castiel took a deep breath, seeming to calm himself enough to step away. His eyes were cold once more, the glow died down, that fury she had witnessed buried deep in ice.

“This is not the first time I have lost my autonomy, or misplaced my trust, or been blindly misled. Perhaps I even deserve it as penance.  However, my loved ones were left hurting and in danger, because of you. Your selfishness and arrogance has prevented me from rebuilding a wall I tore down, one I suspect it is too late to fix. That, I cannot forgive.”

The man fell silent, glaring, but seconds later his glare faded into nothing. Castiel’s expression was blank, his eyes as dull as a human’s and empty of everything. Something like a smile flitted across his lips.

“Do not worry, Daphne Allen, I will not seek vengeance against you. I am simply going to let you live with the products of your greed. This community will know your blessed ‘husband’ has abandoned you. No longer will you receive gifts of favour and thanks in exchange for my abilities. Supernatural creatures that seek me will still find you, no doubt, though that will likely die down as they realise how little I care for you. I will not aid you, should an enemy discover you, as they did this morning. You are lucky they are ignorant of my true name, or you would have far more trouble than a pair of low-level demons.”

He straightened, rolling both shoulders.

“You have wrought this on yourself, ‘wife’. Hope I never come across you again.”

The man disappeared before her eyes, fading out of existence with the shuffle of feathers. Daphne slowly slid to the floor, terror still pulsing through her veins.

A noise from outside had her flinching, scrambling for the stairs.

“Emmanuel?” Her voice rang out cross the empty house. “Emmanuel? C-Castiel? Anyone?”

There was a creak in the floorboards upstairs.

Daphne squeaked, darting back down and into the kitchen. There was no one. No one answered, no one here.

She was alone.

 


End file.
